Falwell and the Political Awakening of American Christians
In the months after the U.S. Supreme Court’s infamous Roe v. Wade decision of January 22, 1973, Baptist minister Jerry Falwell had endured a tortured struggle on how to respond. He had always opposed abortion. But before Roe, abortionists faced prison time and fines in his state of Virginia. In 1967, the state Supreme Court had upheld the five-year sentence of a doctor who had performed an abortion on an 18-year-old college student. Because of this, there was little reason for Falwell to become politically involved on the issue. He could, and did, condemn the practice, but he did not see any need for political action in his state.
With Roe, however, the U.S. Supreme Court had decreed that states could not stop the practice. Despite their angst at the decision, fundamentalists such as Falwell had always chosen not to get involved in political issues. Falwell himself had preached against such secular involvement.
Then there was the time element. Not only was Falwell the pastor of a church with 15,000 members, he had a television and radio ministry, and he was writing books, teaching classes, and administering both a private Christian school and a growing Christian college. He was also in high demand as a speaker across the country.
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